Gibbs: Deficit won't hurt plan to cut red

Published Saturday, March 21, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The White House says new projections of spiraling budget deficits won't stop President Barack Obama from achieving his goals or keeping his promise to cut the country's red ink in half within four years.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Friday that the administration is a bit more optimistic about the nation's economic growth over the long term than congressional analysts. The congressional projections released Friday say Obama's budget would generate deficits averaging almost $1 trillion a year over the next decade.